


Going to California

by chaoticdean



Series: A Tumblr prompts collection [2]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Canon Universe, Castiel and Dean Winchester Falling in Love, Castiel/Dean Winchester Mutual Pining, Conversations in the Impala (Supernatural), Dean's Top 13 Zepp Traxx Mixtape, DeanCas - Freeform, Destiel - Freeform, First Kiss, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Human Castiel (Supernatural), Led Zeppelin References, Light Angst, Love Confessions, M/M, Mutual Pining, Newly Human Castiel (Supernatural), Post-Episode: s12e12 Stuck In The Middle (With You), Road Trips, Sleeping in the Impala (Supernatural), Soft Dean Winchester, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-27
Updated: 2020-07-27
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:33:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,166
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25549762
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chaoticdean/pseuds/chaoticdean
Summary: Dean and Cas go on a road trip to join Sam and Eileen in California. Things start to unfold as they cross the country in the Impala.Prompt — Destiel + roadtrip (thanks to the lovelybend-me-shape-mefor sending this on Tumblr!)Title is from "Going to California" by Led Zeppelin [x]You want me to write something specific?Send me a quick prompt, and I'll do my best!
Relationships: Castiel/Dean Winchester
Series: A Tumblr prompts collection [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1851427
Comments: 8
Kudos: 136





	Going to California

**Author's Note:**

> _Well... It is common knowledge by now that I don't have any self-control when it comes to writing, but I think it's safe to say that I didn't intend on writing a full 4K one-shot laced with Zeppelin references when I received this prompt!_
> 
> _Regardless, to Vanessa and all of the lovely readers coming across this work: I hope you enjoy this as much as I enjoyed writing it. Please leave your thoughts in the comment!_
> 
> _**Disclaimer: the timeline for a road trip from Lebanon, Kansas to San Diego, CA, riding an Impala '67 is probably weird (because it probably takes less than 3 days to get from one to the other), so please disregard it?** _
> 
> _I've also made a Spotify playlist with my take on what's on the damn mixtape, you can listen to it[here](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0a3azUlDIekEYdzWtHURkv?si=95EEKjNpRByf_jy3sYHWog)._
> 
> **Songs that have been used, in order:**  
>  \- [Ramble On](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_284RNK8eCo)  
> \- [Since I've Been Loving You](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8R7zjJMIfU)  
> \- [Ten Years Gone](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DBzuYNK95sM)  
> \- [Thank You](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BXk9G4ZXSI)

_“You ready to go, Cas?”_ Dean asks as he lowers his head to watch him, sitting shotgun inside his beloved Impala, _“What are you doing with these?”_

_“I can’t find the tape, Dean.”_

_“What tape?”,_ Dean is fairly sure he knows what Castiel is looking for but he complies anyway, _“there’s like, at least 30 tapes in there and I have another box in the trunk if we get tired of all of these”._

Dean smiles at the former angel as he raises his head from the box to look at him, a look of despair inside his eyes. His hair is a glorious mess (as per usual), he’s way more tanned than he used to be (probably from the long hours he now spends outside in the garden they’ve grown next to the bunker) and he’s wearing a pair of blue jeans and a dark t-shirt that have been borrowed from Dean, probably.

Every single time Dean looks at him his heart misses a beat.

_“Your tape. I can’t find it. The one you gave me, with your top 13 Zeppelin tracks?”_

_“Oh. You still have that?”_

_Oh. The tape I put my heart on and gave to you so that you’d have something to remind you I still existed all these times you found a reason to leave me? You still have it?_

God _fucking_ bless _._

Dean Winchester has a lot of good and enjoyable sides, but being smooth _ain’t one of them._

 _“Of course I still have that”_ , Castiel answers with an exasperated sigh before he starts shoving things again inside the Impala’s glove box, _“and I can’t find it. Dean, we can’t leave without it.”_

_“It’s that important?”_

Well, _shit_. If Cas is ready to postpone the road trip they’ve been prepping for for weeks now, let alone over a cassette tape, it really must mean a lot to him.

Not that it’s making Dean giddy on the inside, _thank you very much._

_“Cas?”_

_“What, Dean? I’m not leaving without —“_

He stops when he raises his head again only to see Dean holding said tape between his fingers, a smile on his face.

There are so many emotions roaming over Castiel’s face that Dean almost feels like he’s sitting on a rollercoaster.

 _“It was inside your trench coat’s inner pocket. You’re not wearing it all that much now, so I put it in the wash last night and retrieved the tape before it went all Nemo inside the washing machine”,_ he explains as Castiel watches him with a blank expression, _"There, better?”_

He extends his arms to give him the cassette tape, and Castiel suddenly retrieves control over his emotions again. He’s been dealing with this a lot recently, as his grace slowly fades away he’s had to come to grasp with humanity again.

Dean’s heart misses another beat as their fingers grasp lightly, Castiel taking the mixtape from his hand, and it takes a lot out of him no to reach out and keep his hand inside of his.

 _“Can we go, now?”_ Dean says as he finally hops in the driver seat

_“Yes.”_

_“Do you want me to put it on?”_

_“Yes, please.”_

Dean smiles as they finally get on the road, Robert Plant’s voice filling the space as they head on the open road. The next three days are entirely theirs until they reach California.

_“Ah, sometimes I grow so tired_

_But I know I've got one thing I got to do_

_Ramble on_

_And now's the time, the time is now_

_To sing my song”_

*******

It’s close to 2 am when Dean finally gives up and finds a secluded spot to crash for a couple of hours. They've been driving at a solid pace since they left Lebanon 6 hours before, only making a pit stop for food and refreshments, and as much as he loves driving without stopping, he’s not 26 anymore and his body tends to make him bitchy if he doesn’t get his four hours.

Castiel crashed in the backseat for what feels like an hour already. When Dean finally stops the engine and look over at his partner, he can’t help but smile at the sight of several-millennia-old-Cas, sprawled in the backseat of his beloved Baby, dark hair splendidly tousled in 10 different directions, snoring soundly, pressed against Dean’s winter jacket that he’s somehow got his hand on.

_“You’re going to get cold like that, Angel.”_

He doesn’t wait for an answer, judging by the way Castiel is snoring lightly, he’s pretty far gone already. Dean reaches for the blanket on the quarter-deck and drapes it around Cas. He lingers for a moment, his fingers finding their way to Cas’s hair, stroking nice and slow at his cheek.

There’s something tugging at his heart, a difficult feeling between sadness and love, a pain that he can never quite get to cease. Sometimes it breaks as he watches Cas struggle with his humanity, and suddenly breathing becomes difficult.

It’s not fair, what Castiel has to go through after everything they had to bear. They saved the world, they defeated Chuck, Jack had to return to Heaven, it shouldn’t be this way. It shouldn’t be on Cas to suffer, it shouldn’t be that easy for them.

Suddenly there are two pools of ocean blues starring at him, as his thumb makes his way through Cas’s jawline.

Maybe it’s the exhaustion, or maybe the feeling of Castiel’s warm skin and light stubble under his fingertips is too tender for him to let go, so he doesn’t, and cups his cheek instead.

There’s a fond smile on Castiel’s lips, _“you need to get some sleep, Dean”,_ his voice is heavy with sleep like he’s second away of drifting off again.

 _“I know, Angel. I just didn’t want you to catch a cold”,_ he smiles back at him.

And it’s true, there’s no lie in his words, but he also really wish he could just hop in the backseat and lie against him to keep him warm.

“‘ _mfine_ ”, Cas grumbles, eyes shutting on impact.

He’s back to snoring in a nano-second, and Dean can’t help but release a laugh. He retrieves his hand then, still taking a moment to gaze at him, how the faint light from the road makes his features stand out in the relative dark.

 _“I love you, Angel”_ , he murmurs then, in the comfort and silence of his car, starring at the ceiling, _“I know it’s tough, I know you’re struggling, but I’m here. And I love you. I love you, Cas.”_

Because it’s easier to admit how much he feels for him in the darkness and soundless night, rather than having to stare at it in the bright light of day.

_I love you, and it’s not fair that you have to go through all of this on your own, it’s not fair that you’re the one that has to suffer and lose your identity._

_I love you, and I’m scared because I’m used to you leaving, and I don’t think I can make it through if you leave again._

_I love you, and it’s dark and terrifying and I wish I had the nerve to tell you, but I’m too afraid, cause what if you laugh? What if I’m not enough? What if it’s one-sided? I can't lose you. Not now, not ever. And if I have to swallow this up and bottle my feelings back up again I will do it in a heartbeat. What’s more than a lifetime when it’s been more than a decade, anyway?_

_I love you, with all that’s left in me, with all the ferocity of the last decade we just went through._

_I love you, Cas. Can’t you see?_

He falls asleep then, to the sound of Castiel’s slow breathing.

*******

It’s already been a day since Dean and Castiel left the bunker to join Sam and Eileen in California, and Cas is sinking into a melancholic state he’s never quite experienced before.

He used to think cars were slow and void of meaning, cold and loud when he could just use his wings to travel the world in a flap. But of course, that was long before, in a time where he was still a defender of Heaven in all his glory, before he fell, and chose Humanity, and betrayed, and loved.

Before the Winchesters. Before Free Will. Before _Dean_.

But now as he awakes lying in the backseat to the voice of the hunter softly singing, the sound of the engine rumbling firmly against his chest and the sun rising slowly?

Road tripping was the best idea they had in a solid couple of months.

_“I've really been the best of fools_

_I did what I could, yeah_

_'Cause I love you, baby_

_How I love you, darling.”_

Dean’s slightly off-key, as he usually is, but Castiel doesn’t mind and takes great pleasure in quietly watching him as he drums his way along the steering wheel, singing like he doesn’t give a damn if anyone’s listening. The edges of his hair look gold because of the way the sunlight catches his features, his eyes shining like tiny emeralds.

_“Everybody trying to tell me_

_That you didn't mean me no good_

_I've been trying, Lord, let me tell you_

_Let me tell you I really did the best I could.”_

He looks beautiful. Happier than Castiel has seen him in several weeks — actually, scratch that, _months_ — and it makes his heart flutter.

 _“Hey, Sunshine. Did Winchester Motel treat you well?”_ Dean smiles as he finally catches sight of him being awake in the rearview mirror.

 _“Yeah… Although, I think my back might disagree with me”_ , he grimaces as he returns to a normal upright position, _“where are we?”_

_“We’re somewhere in Arizona. I think… Do you wanna stop for coffee? I’m starving, and it's not like we’re in a hurry.”_

_“Said the guy who decided to drive all night instead of stopping in a motel”_ , Cas quickly replies sarcastically.

_“I did stop, actually. I slept for like 4 hours. You were sleeping like a baby in that backseat, I didn’t want to wake you.”_

_“I remember. You put a blanket around me.”_

_“Yeah. Didn’t want you to catch a stupid cold.”_

Castiel can see the fond smile on the hunter’s lips and it takes everything in him not to reach out and kiss it away.

It’s fresh, intricate, delicate even, this thing between them. Cas feels like it’s always been there, a tick veil inside his heart that he could never quite let go until a few months back, after they defeated Chuck, after Jack stepped up and Castiel, Angel of the Lord, slowly fade away.

It comes in touches and little things, from the way Dean will sometimes extend his arm over the seat of the Impala to brush lightly at the hair on the nape of his neck, to buying things specifically for him when he goes grocery shopping.

Or the way he gently touched his face and hair last night, the way his eyes glimmered with something dangerous and good. Cas wished he’d have reached out to him at that point, dragged him into the backseat, and fell back asleep against him, safe.

And of course, there’s this time both of them had a little too much to drink alone in the bunker, and Cas _accidentally_ brushed his lips over Dean’s, his dirty blonde hair gloriously wild and his green eyes shimmering with something Cas couldn’t even comprehend.

It’s been weeks, and he still can’t forget. How soft Dean’s lips felt against him, how good it felt to finally let go of all the pretend, how hard he shivered when a deep moan escaped from Dean’s throat.

It’s been weeks and _he_ _still_ _wants it all._

_“Baby, since I've been loving you_

_I'm about to lose_

_I'm about to lose, lose my worried mind_

_Just one more, just one more, oh yeah_

_Since I've been loving you, I'm about to lose my worried mind.”_

*******

_“Can we listen to your mixtape again?”_

_“Yeah, sure. What is it with you and that tape again?”_

_Did you figure out that I gave it to you to tell you I’d always be there, no matter how pissed I could be at you? Did you figure out it’s like I gave you my heart for you to keep, forever?_

_“You made it for me. It’s the first gift I’ve ever been given. It means everything to me.”_

Dean doesn’t think he’ll ever get used to that, Castiel’s brutal honesty. It’s been years, but sometimes it still takes him by surprise.

He lets Cas fumble with the player, and then Plant’s voice is filling the space again, as they race their way through Arizona under pouring rain.

_“Then as it was, then again it will be_

_And though the course may change sometimes_

_Rivers always reach the sea_

_Blind stars of fortune, each have several rays_

_On the wings of maybe, down in birds of prey_

_Kind of makes me feel sometimes, didn't have to grow_

_But as the eagle leaves the nest, it's got so far to go.”_

*******

_“Do you wanna stop for the night, find a motel, or are we Winchestering in the backseat again?”_

_“We’re in the middle of nowhere, I don’t think we’ll find a motel.”_

_“Well, probably not for the next hundred miles, no, but I can keep going.”_

_“I don’t mind sleeping there again.”_

_“Okay, back to Winchester Motel it is, then.”_

They stop for dinner north of Phoenix, stopping for a couple of hours to stretch their legs, enjoy warm food, and a couple of drinks.

Dean can see that Cas is tipsy when they stop for the night, finding a spot to park the Impala next to a gigantic field. It’s clear in the way he speaks, his voice slightly hoarse and his eyes shimmering differently than usual.

He extends his arm to brush at Castiel’s shoulder to get the angel to look at him.

_“Are you in the mood for some star gazing?”_

_“We’re gonna be freezing.”_

_“Ah it’s alright, I’ll get a couple of blankets, and then we can crash inside when we’ve had enough. Deal?”_

_“Deal.”_

There’s a faint smile on Castiel’s face as he exits the car to go sit on the hood of the Impala, Dean then climbing next to him with blankets minutes after. He’s already watching the sky when he joins in, his eyes staring in the distance.

 _“You okay, Cas?”,_ Dean asks, mildly concerned.

_“Yeah. Why wouldn’t I be?”_

_“I don’t know, you’re… different.”_

_“I could say the same thing about you, you know?”_

_“Why is that?”_

_I’m the same I’ve always been, mind you Angel of the goddamn Lord._

_“I don’t know. It’s like you’re a different person than when we’re in the bunker. You feel… lighter. Happier. I like this you.”_

_“Do I need to feel offended that you don’t like bunker-me?”_ , Dean asks with a smile, finally lying next to him, his eyes raised to the sky.

The night is clear and yeah, it is kinda cold, but blankets should do the tricks.

And if it doesn’t, _well_ …

_“No, don’t get me wrong, I like bunker-you, it’s just… Nice, seeing you like this.”_

_“Yeah, well. Give me my car, my angel, and an open-road, that’s all I need.”_

Did he really just said _my_ angel?

 _“Not an angel anymore, you know that”_ , Cas smiles faintly, lowering his gaze to look at the hunter, locking-eyes with him.

_“Maybe not semantically speaking, but you’ll always be my angel.”_

_Oh for fuck’s sake, Winchester, you don’t have any alcohol to excuse this on, you know that, right?_

But Cas just smiles at him, and Dean’s heart just grows ten sizes watching his face light up. The former angel takes his gaze back to the stars then, a light smile still painted on his lips, but Dean can't tear his gaze away from him and the way the dull light of the moon makes his face stand out in the dark.

_God, you’re beautiful._

_“You know we’ve got you, right?”_ , he says after a while, finally taking his gaze away from him.

When Cas doesn’t respond, Dean keeps going, _“I know it’s tough but we’re always gonna be on your side. I’m always gonna be there.”_

It’s not a promise, and merely a statement. Castiel knows, Dean is pretty sure, but he needs to say it out loud for him to comprehend.

_“I know.”_

They’re quiet for a moment, watching the stars without talking, the silence sitting comfortably between them.

But then Dean can feel Cas shivering.

_“Okay, let’s hop in the backseat. I don’t want you losing any toe because I left you to freeze on the hood for an hour too long.”_

_“It’s fine, I like it here.”_

_“Cas, you’re shivering like we’re in the middle of Minnesota in January.”_

_“Oh.”_

Dean rolls his eyes at that because of course, only Castiel wouldn’t realize he’s actually really cold and respond with a simple “ _Oh._ ”

_“Come on, let’s get you inside.”_

He watches as Castiel lay in the backseat, and throws him several blankets to make sure he doesn’t get too cold. But no matter what he does, the angel keeps shivering. He’s got 3 blankets and Dean’s winter jacket on, but somehow it still isn’t enough.

_“Let me grab some more stuff from the trunk.”_

_“Dean.”_

He stops before exiting the car, Castiel’s baby blues locked in his.

_“Just… just come here.”_

_“W—What?”_

_“The only way we’re both not freezing to death is if we sleep together in the backseat. I think you know that?”_

_“Yeah, but… Look, not like I don’t see the appeal of sleeping with you, but it’s not gonna be comfortable for you, Cas.”_

_Holy hell, do you even hear yourself, Winchester?_

But Cas just smiles at him, grasping at his hand to urge him to join him.

_“I’ll take sleeping with you in the backseat of the Impala and sharing the warmth to freezing to death alone in the backseat right in the middle of Arizona any day, Dean Winchester.”_

_“God, what a sap.”_

It takes them a minute to find the right way to position themselves so that it’s comfortable for both of them. Dean ends up lying between Cas’s legs, his head resting in the crook of his neck. He can feel Cas steady breathing, his arms tight around his waist.

 _“I’m not hurting you, am I?”_ , he whispers, his lips so close to Castiel’s skin he can feel his warmth on the tip of his tongue.

_“No. No, you’re not. It’s actually quite enjoyable.”_

_“Yeah?”_

_Yeah, I fucking bet it is. It’s actual Heaven._

_“See? I’m not shivering anymore.”_

_“Are you trying to tell me you were right?”_

_“I’m not trying, I’m telling.”_

He knows there’s a smug smile on Castiel’s lips without having to check.

And suddenly there’s Castiel hand carding lightly through his hair, and he swears to fucking God it takes everything in him not to release anything resembling a moan.

He dives in the moment then, shifting closer, a slight shiver coursing through his body at the sensation of Castiel’s hand softly going through his hair.

_“Is that okay?”_

_“Are you kidding me?”_

_“I can stop if you want me to.”_

And maybe it’s the moment itself that makes Dean feeling smug enough, or maybe he can blame it on his weariness later, but it’s then that he kisses Castiel’s skin where his shoulder meets his neck, where it’s warm and inviting and it smells like sleep and all the things Dean knows he does not deserve.

There’s a finger under his chin then, and Castiel lifts his face up to make the hunter look at him. Dean’s heart misses a beat when he sees the smile on his friend’s lips.

Dean has shared a lot of kisses in his life. Some were good. Many were great.

And not a single one can compete with this one.

Dean props himself up on his elbows, biting lightly at Cas bottom lip as he runs his thumb along the rough stubble of Castiel’s jaw. There’s a desperate moan rising from the back of Cas’s throat, echoing through his entire body as their lips press together again, sinking in shared pleasure.

For a few blessed moments, it’s like nothing exists outside of Castiel’s mouth, Castiel’s hands making their way over his skin, Castiel’s breathing syncing with his. There’s no one else in the world and they’re the only one left living in the instant, the world narrowing down to each and every single one of their touch.

Dean is almost sure he could sink and never make it back to the surface, and he wouldn’t even find it in him to _care_.

Cas breaks the kiss then, only to breathe Dean’s name, his voice frayed and gasping for air. Dean leans forward again, and they share another kiss; It’s deeper and perhaps more desperate this time, filled with a loud echo of love that carves its way into Cas’s heart.

And it doesn’t have to be fast, it doesn’t need to sloppy, or stolen, Dean realizes as he looks into the angel’s eyes. They have time, if they want to give themselves a shot.

They have all the time in the world, and nowhere else to go.

And kissing Cas? Kissing Cas feels like coming Home.

*******

The morning light is soft, inviting even, as it frames Dean’s hair into golden drops. Castiel allows himself to think for a moment that every morning could be like this, waking up warm and safe, his body pressed up against Dean soundly asleep. For a fleeting moment, he thinks about how the first thing he’d feel would be the weight of Dean’s body on his own, the steady breathing of the hunter tickling his skin.

_It doesn’t have to be a one-time thing, does it?_

*******

Dean is in Heaven. There are no other possibilities, no way this is the real world.

_“Hey.”_

His voice sends shivers down the hunter’s spine as he shifts against Castiel to look at his face.

_“Hey. How’s your back?”_

_I don’t give a shit about your back. What are we playing, here? Do we pretend like nothing has happened?_

_“It’s fine. Come here.”_

It’s chilly in the car but Dean doesn’t even register, as Castiel captures his mouth with his. They both have horrible morning breath and he doesn’t give a flying fuck, because it’s Cas and he’s kissing him like nothing else matters.

 _“My head kind of hurts, though”_ , Castiel says as their lips parts, and Dean can’t help but rumble a laugh out.

 _“Tequila is a wicked thing, angel”_ , Dean answers, biting kisses into the cut of his jaw, _“Wait until we get coffee inside of you and you should feel a bit better.”_

_“You’re not wrong.”_

_It’s 6 am and it feels unreal, and I’m lying here against you like there’s nothing easiest in the world. Do we have a right? Are we allowed? Are they gonna take it back from us if we even try?_

Dean doesn’t know the answers to his own question, but as Castiel maps the contour of his mouth with his tongue, his hand clutching at his sides like he’s about to drift away to paradise, he doesn’t think it matters.

_As long as they have each other._

*******

They’re finally crossing into California when Castiel puts the tape on again, and his beloved favorite band starts playing again, words and melody echoing on the ridges of the Impala.

_“If the sun refused to shine_

_I would still be loving you_

_Mountains crumble to the sea_

_There will still be you and me”_

He smiles then, reaching out to take Castiel’s hand inside of his, raising it to his mouth to kiss his knuckles softly.

_“You okay, Angel?”_

_“Yes. I just… I’m gonna miss this. You and me, the road…”_

_“Hey”_ , Dean interrupts and the angel looks up at him again, _“we’re not going anywhere, you and me. And both the road and the car will be waiting for us to go Home in a few weeks.”_

_Dean Winchester has a lot of good and enjoyable sides, and most of the time, he makes good use of it._

And maybe it’s Castiel’s hand firmly linked inside of his, or maybe it’s the way his eyes linger on the side of his face as the angel watches the landscape change, or maybe he’s just not so afraid anymore, so he lets it go.

_“I love you.”_

Castiel smiles, his eyes still fixed on the outside world, but his voice is steady, unwavering.

_“I love you too, Dean.”_

_“And so today, my world it smiles_

_Your hand in mine, we walk the miles_

_Thanks to you it will be done_

_For you to me are the only one_

_Happiness, no more be sad_

_Happiness, I'm glad.”_

**Author's Note:**

> **_[rebloggable on Tumblr](https://chaoticdean.tumblr.com/post/624800973910589441/for-the-prompt-destiel-roadtrip-pls) _ **


End file.
